I read this in a Chuck Swindoll devo several weeks ago:

Charles Haddon Spurgeon remains one of the most colorful and gifted preachers in the history of the church. Any man who loves to preach and desires to cultivate the art and skill of communication must study Spurgeon. Before the man was 30 years old, he was the most popular preacher in England. The new Metropolitan Tabernacle was filled to overflowing every Lord’s Day as people came miles by horse and buggy to hear the gifted man handle the Word of God. They were challenged, encouraged, exhorted, fed, and built up in the Christian faith. He was truly a phenomenon.

As a result, he also became the object of great criticism by the press, by other pastors, by influential people in London, and by petty parishioners. The man, not always a model of quiet piety (to say the least), had numerous enemies. Normally, he handled the criticism fairly well . . . but finally, it began to get to him. He began to slump beneath the attacks. The persecution started to take a severe toll on his otherwise resilient spirit.

I am told that his wife, seeing the results of those verbal blows on her husband, decided to assist him in getting back on his feet and regaining his powerful stature in the pulpit. She found in her Bible Matthew 5:10-12, and she printed the words of this passage on a large sheet of paper. Then she tacked that sheet to the ceiling of their bedroom, directly above Charles’s side of the bed! Every morning, every evening, when he would rest his enormous frame in his bed, the words were there to meet and to encourage him.

“Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:10-12)

The large sheet of paper remained fixed to the ceiling for an extended period of time until it had done the job. May Mrs. Spurgeon’s tribe increase! It is refreshing to think how a marriage partner can be such a vital channel of encouragement.
~ Swindoll 

As I read this, I remembered a lesson the Lord taught me. I have shared bits and pieces of my families journey in this blog. Sometimes boldly, sometimes openly, sometimes its woven in but I try to be pretty transparent for those who actually bother to read this thing, because the Lord has called me to be.

If you think you see an air of self-righteousness in here, you have completely missed it. I have nothing to be self-righteousness about… I am a full blown mess who has been and is being fully redeemed by the grace of God for the glory of Christ… and so is my family. You might catch me in a frustrated fed-up for now moment… but I don’t stay in that place. I live in this place called Faith, Hope, and Love and I believe with all my heart that if God can redeem me… He can redeem anyone!

So as I share Mr Swindoll’s words with you, and approach my own life lesson, let me ask you woman of God, before you walk away from this man… this family… have you asked God to give you eyes to see the attack that is being made against him and against your family?

Woman of God, have you asked the One who gives sight to the blind, if your husband is under attack? Have you considered that maybe, just maybe, he doesn’t know how to recognize and fight an enemy that he cannot see?

Woman of God, are you fighting with him or for him?

Not long ago I shared with a hurting wife how the Lord opened my eyes to see the lies that were being whispered in my ears by the kingdom of darkness. This whisper from the kingdom of darkness can even take Holy Scriptures and twist them and speak them crookedly directly into your heart and manage even to convince you they are your own thoughts… and even quite possibly the thoughts of God… when they are not.

Satan twisted out of context Scripture in the wilderness and used it against the Word of God Himself… what makes us think he won’t attempt to do that with us?

What my husband and I have learned is that we need to see past the obvious… grace is this amazing thing that gives us eyes to see things with reality instead of with suspicion and assumption. We have learned that the “voices in our head” that speak to us when we are having a “bad day” are usually lies straight from the pits of hell that are intended to raise from its death our crucified flesh.

When we find ourselves in a funk or in a fight, we now both step back and analyze… is this a real issue we need to address in order to grow stronger and closer or is this Satan creating a conflict to cause dissension and division in our home in order to derail something that God is in the midst of doing in and through us.

You see, I might not be able to see the alignment of the spiritual realm as God works in and around and for me and my family… but Satan most certainly can.

My husband and I have learned to speak to each other and instead of saying “well I think…” We now say “well in my head this is what is being said…” We have realized that just because a thought enters our mind it does not mean it’s actually our thoughts. We have also come to realize that just because we are ill it does not mean that we are ill with each other. The majority of the time, one or both us are actually under a spiritual attack.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.

Ephesians 6:12-13

This verse especially relates to our families.

So before you walk away have you asked how can you pray for and encourage your husband? Are you as his wife, speaking life into him and over him or are you constantly condemning him and speaking death? Are those that you are seeking council from co-condemners or co-encouragers? If they are co-condemners you need to walk away now. I don’t care how horrible it is at home… if they co-condemn your husband you are seeking counsel from the wrong people. 

I have heard of women of God walking away because their husbands fight against them and their relationship with Christ and the church… Woman of God let me challenge you to ask yourself… if you were called to the mission field in the Middle East and God called you to witness to a man who questioned your authenticity and your relationship with this man named called Christ and His church would you condemn him or would you be on your face before your Father in heaven praying for him to have eyes to see and ears to hear and a heart to believe?

Have you considered that your husband just might be testing your authenticity to see if you really believe what you claim and as he challenges your heart with his persecutions have you considered that when he sees you stand firm in your faith and choose to love him in spite of himself this might be the very thing that God uses to melt his heart and bring him on his face to the cross of Christ?

When was the last time you were on your face before your Heavenly Father praying for your husband instead of about him…

Woman of God, before you walk away… have you asked God if this man is your mission?

Yesterday I attended the funeral of a beautiful woman of God… her testimony… her husband preceded her in glory because he was her mission.

For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband? 

1 Corinthians 7:16